Chick-fil-A at UIS remains up in the air

Whether or not a Chick-fil-A fast-food restaurant will return to Springfield is still up in the air, according to a University of Illinois Springfield spokesman. The April announcement that the restaurant was considering a location on the UIS camps created controversy because objectors say the company has given financial support to anti-gay organizations.

Whether or not a Chick-fil-A fast-food chicken restaurant will return to Springfield is still up in the air, according to a University of Illinois Springfield spokesman.

News broke in April that Chick-fil-A was considering the UIS campus as a possible location for a new restaurant in Springfield. Chick-fil-A had an outlet in White Oaks Mall a number of years ago.

The announcement created a controversy because objectors say the company has given financial support to anti-gay organizations.

The background

In response to those concerns, student government members decided to hold off on supporting the restaurant.

The Student Government Association instead voted to create a task force to study potential restaurants – including Chick-fil-A – that could be brought to UIS.

That decision was made only weeks before the end of the semester, UIS spokesman Derek Schnapp said, so there’s been little more discussion.

When students return this fall, he said he expects the task force to make a recommendation to university leaders.

What’s next?

When students debate the issue, they could factor in recent comments by Chick-fil-A president Dan Cathy into their decision.

"We are very much supportive of the family - the biblical definition of the family unit,” Cathy recently told the Baptist Press. “We are a family-owned business, a family-led business, and we are married to our first wives. We give God thanks for that."

Since Cathy’s comments, however, Chick-fil-A has issued its own statement: “Going forward, our intent is to leave the policy debate over same-sex marriage to the government and political arena," the company said.